Argonian (Skyrim)
Enigmatic and intelligent, the Argonians are experts at guerrilla warfare, and their natural abilities suit their swampy homeland, Black Marsh. They have developed immunities to the diseases that have doomed many would-be explorers in the region, and they are capable of easily exploring underwater locations due to their ability to breathe underwater. Argonians make proficient thieves, due to their increased lockpicking and sneaking skills. Culture Politics After conquest of the Dunmer province of Morrowind, little is known about the politics of the Argonians in the Fourth Era. There is an Argonian political faction called the An-Xileel, but there is little information about them, except they are composed of mostly, if not all, Argonians, and that they pushed back Mehrunes Dagon's forces during the Oblivion Crisis in Black Marsh, and were also the faction responsible for orchestrating the conquest of Morrowind. Race Relations In Windhelm, Argonians are sequestered from the predominantly Nordic population, and are forced to live at the Argonian Assemblage, located at the city docks. After the mass exodus of Dunmer and Argonian peoples to Windhelm, the citizens became suspicious, worrying that the immigrants would influence or otherwise dilute their culture, and so forced them into segregation. Largely, this extreme behavior was inspired by the political confrontation between the Empire of Tamriel and the rulers of Skyrim. However, this eventually just turned into blatant racism. Dialogue with Ulfric Stormcloak – Despite the estrangement between the Nords and the Argonians, they are more respected and tolerated in Skyrim than other foreign immigrants due to their beneficial contributions to Nord industries. This beneficial assimilation to Skyrim's economy has helped some Argonians—such as those found in Riften—ingratiate themselves to Skyrim's aloof society.Scourge of the Gray Quarter Marriage Unlike the citizens of Skyrim, who prefer to marry using an Amulet of Mara, some Argonians adhere to their native marriage traditions. In Black Marsh, it is customary to present a lover with an Argonian Wedding Band, which is crafted by the courting member. Each ring is unique and has personal meaning to the creator and the recipient. "In Black Marsh, tradition dictates we present a potential mate a unique wedding ring to represent our future bond." "Every Argonian wedding proposal band is supposed to have three flawless amethysts as part of their design. Two of the gems, the ones on the outside, represent the couple to be married... one for the husband, one for the wife. The amethyst in the center represents The Hist, the entity that all Argonians consider a sacred part of our lives." – Talen-JeiDialogue with Talen-Jei, Character creation Skill bonuses Starting spells *Flames (Destruction) *Healing (Restoration) Special abilities *Histskin: Invoke the power of the Hist to recover health ten times faster for 60 seconds. Can only be used once per day. *Resist Disease: Your Argonian blood is 50% resistant to disease. *Waterbreathing: Your Argonian Lungs can breathe underwater. Popular usage and unique gameplay The Argonians' stealth and lockpicking make them brilliant assassins, thieves, scouts, and ambushers. Their lack of combat bonuses in archery and one-handed weapons can be overcome by natural skill leveling and play. Argonians can be used fairly well as spellswords, but conjuration training may be necessary. They can also be useful mage-thieves due to their skills in both magic and stealth, though one may want some illusion training. Their Resist Disease ability allows them to become somewhat immune to biological agents without requiring any enchanted apparel with the effect. Argonians have unique advantages due to their natural waterbreathing ability. This gives them an all-terrain versatility in an area that other races need magic, potions, or enchanted gear (such as Volsung's mask) to fill. Argonians are able to make ample use of Skyrim's waterways as a means of quick travel, free from ambush and interference (for example, traveling from Riverwood to Whiterun by river can be quite expedient and avoids roadside hazards including wolves, bandits, and assassins) and also a quick means of escape should they find themselves in a dangerous situation that they cannot handle. River travel has its own share of hazards, however, such as waterfalls, rapids, and hostile animals such as Slaughterfish and Mudcrabs. Nonetheless, the Argonians can also be quite a "tank" in battle because of their Histskin ability that multiplies their health regeneration ten times. Notable Argonians The following is a list of some of the more notable Argonians that can be found in Skyrim: *Beem-Ja – A mage bodyguard encountered in Ironbind Barrow. *Deekus – A lone resident in a campsite near Hela's Folly and a target of the Dark Brotherhood. *Derkeethus – The only Argonian follower, found in Darkwater Pass. *Scouts-Many-Marshes – A dock worker in Windhelm, and one of the two only marriageable male Argonians. *From-Deepest-Fathoms – A survivor of Avanchnzel who lives in Riften's Docks and gives the quest "Unfathomable Depths." *Shahvee – A dock worker in Windhelm, and the only marriageable female Argonian. *Takes-In-Light – A sorceress and former member of the College of Winterhold whose spectral form is seen numerous times during "The Staff of Magnus." *Talen-Jei – The proprietor of the Bee and Barb. *Teeba-Ei – A miner who resides at Stonehills and works at Rockwallow Mine, housecarl to Jarl Sorli the Builder of Morthal. *Veezara – The last Shadowscale of the Dark Brotherhood. *Watches-The-Roots – An adventurer who perished during the expedition at Avanchnzel. Quests *A Few Words with You *Argonian Ale Extraction *Extracting an Argonian *Unfathomable Depths *Sealing the Deal *Ringmaker *Coming of Age *Shahvee's Amulet Trivia *Khajiit and Argonians are the only races that when in unarmed combat open the clenched fist and swipe the claws at the attacker. Men and Mer attack with closed fists. Related items *Argonian Ale *Argonian Assemblage Key *Argonian Bloodwine Related reading *''Argonian Account, Book 1'' *''Argonian Account, Book 2'' *''Argonian Account, Book 3'' *''Argonian Account, Book 4'' *''Argonian Ceremony'' *''Death of a Wanderer'' *''The Lusty Argonian Maid: Folio Edition'' *''The Lusty Argonian Maid, v1'' *''The Lusty Argonian Maid, v2'' *''Mara Smiles Upon You!'' *''The Seed'' *''The Sultry Argonian Bard, v1'' Bugs * There seems to be a graphical glitch tied to the Argonians. The backs of most helmets will not appear when worn by the Dragonborn, a few exceptions being the iron, Daedric, scaled, hide, and the Imperial helmets. Other helmets such as the steel, dragon bone, and elven helmets are missing the back section of them, making most helmets look rather ridiculous on the Argonian race. The ancient Nord helmet also does not properly change over from its male version to the female version when worn by a female Argonian. It instead stays as the male version with no back to the helmet. * Becoming a vampire will cause female Argonians to use male walking/running animations and standing posture. * Shrouded Cowl tends to clip through the Argonian forehead area. This is only a visual bug. * When sitting or using transportation, the Argonian's tail will clip through the surface. Gallery Argonian Hand.png|A photo of an Argonian hand. Female Lizard.jpg|An Argonian with fire magic. Variant argonian.jpg|Two variations of Argonian faces. ArgonianFemalewlegal.jpg|An Argonian sneaking. Argonian8.jpg|A brown Argonian. Argonian Vampire.jpg|Argonian vampire Argonian from skyrim.jpg|How Argonians are depicted in loading screens. Argonian Male.jpg|Argonian male concept art Argonian Female.jpg|Argonian female concept art Argonian Faces.jpg|Argonian face concept art See also *Skills (Skyrim) *Spells (Skyrim) *Races (Skyrim) *Perks Appearances * * * * * * * cs:Argoniáni de:Argonier (Skyrim) es:Argoniano (Skyrim) fr:Argonien pl:Argonianin (Skyrim) ru:Аргонианин (Skyrim) Category:Skyrim: Argonians